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Türkiye has become a country that shares its railway construction experience with other nations, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said, noting that railway personnel from several Asian and African countries received training last year.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Uraloglu said the Türkiye Railway Academy, founded in 2020, was designed to provide comprehensive training solutions aligned with sectoral development goals and professional competencies.
He said the academy focuses on identifying sector needs accurately and supporting individual, professional, and institutional development to provide qualified human resources for the railway sector.
Uraloglu said railway personnel from Syria, Jordan, Tunisia, Libya, Kyrgyzstan, Tanzania, and Sudan received training last year on superstructure, maintenance and repair, and switch maintenance.
He added that consultancy services were provided to Azerbaijan for the establishment of a Railway Academy.
Within the scope of rebuilding and rehabilitating Syrian railways, training was also delivered to personnel from Syrian and Hejaz railways on construction processes and line maintenance.
“The training activities provided by TCDD lay solid foundations for the knowledge infrastructure that carries our railway vision into the future. The level we have reached in training reinforces Türkiye’s leadership in the field of transportation,” Uraloglu said.
Uraloglu said Türkiye’s railway journey within its current national borders began on Sept. 23, 1856, with the construction of the Izmir-Aydin line.
He noted that 4,136 kilometers of railway network had been built by 1923 and that investments during the Ataturk era expanded the network to 7,900 kilometers by 1950.
After a period in which an average of only 18 kilometers (11.8 miles) of railway were built annually, new efforts were launched in line with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 2023 targets, he said, adding that the railway network has now reached 13,919 kilometers.
Uraloglu said Türkiye has risen to become the eighth country in the world and the sixth in Europe to use high-speed train technology.
He also noted that TCDD Director General Veysi Kurt serves as president of the International Union of Railways Middle East Regional Board, chairs its meetings, and works to strengthen relations and international railway connections in the region.
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